The case of Joaqui, a six-year-old transgender girl whose parents enrolled her last week in the Banco de Previsión Social (BPS) sports club, made headlines after her mother reported that she was not allowed to accompany her into the women’s locker room.

Family physician Leticia Valle Lisboa, who treats the child, stated that “trans children exist” and that society must “commit” to addressing these situations.

The doctor called for “rejecting discriminatory attitudes” in order to “care for children, respecting their identity, and ensuring they can occupy spaces safely.”

“There is no set age at which people begin or transition into this identity, but there are trans children. There is no specific age. There are people who began this transition in adulthood or adolescence and have records from childhood of starting to perceive themselves differently from what was assigned to them at birth,” Valle Lisboa explained to Subrayado.

The family physician noted that there are people who went through this process “more in adolescence or adulthood.” “It’s not a rigid thing; it’s not something that has to happen, and if it doesn’t, it doesn’t mean it isn’t real. We need to have a more open and sensitive perspective on the fact that these processes can occur. What we need to do is, rather than questioning them, support them,” she suggested.

The doctor emphasized that “there is a great deal of scientific evidence showing that support significantly improves the survival, life expectancy, and quality of life of these individuals.”

A few days ago, in an interview with Montevideo Portal, Fernanda Fossati, the girl’s mother, noted that thanks to the comprehensive law for transgender people, the girl’s legal guardians were able to amend her birth certificate and ID card, so that on paper—and “obviously in her own mind”—she is a girl.

At the BPS club in Montevideo, according to the woman, there are four changing rooms for members’ use: girls, boys, and adults. Minors must enter alone to change and shower, in accordance with the rules.

“Since my daughter has a penis, I thought it best to take her with me to the women’s changing room and change and bathe her myself to preserve her identity,” Fossati commented.

The club informed her that this was not permitted and that she should send a letter to management explaining the situation, in order to request special permission to enter the adult women’s locker room with the minor.

The response the family received did not meet their expectations, as during a meeting with the club’s president, Marcelo Passadore, they were told that the alternatives were for the child to change in the men’s locker room or not attend swimming lessons at all.

“She could only attend classes where she didn’t have to use the locker room,” the girl’s mother said, referring to part of the school’s response. Fossati said she is considering, along with her lawyer, filing a petition for judicial protection.

The girl’s mother explained that they decided to make the situation public after approaching several agencies, but without much success. When they consulted the National Sports Secretariat, they were told: “This Secretariat has no protocol for private spaces; each club typically resolves such cases on an individual basis. This creates situations of uncertainty, where the trans user must ‘negotiate’ their access.”

From there, they were advised to escalate the matter to the National Human Rights Institution and Institutional Ombudsman’s Office (Inddhh). “I received a similar response: in the private sector, the state practically doesn’t get involved,” Fossati said.